Best beauty advent calendars 2026: makeup, skincare and fragrance
John Lewis, Harrods and M&S have published their 2026 beauty calendars. Here is how they compare on products, full sizes and declared value, and which type suits makeup, skincare or fragrance fans.
Beauty advent calendars vary more than most: some hold 24 products, others more than 40, and the share of full sizes and the value printed on the box change from one calendar to the next. Below are the figures three UK retailers publish for their 2026 calendars, a method to judge any calendar before you buy, then makeup, skincare and fragrance calendars, with a word on budget calendars and calendars for teenagers.
Best beauty advent calendars 2026: how they compare
John Lewis, Harrods and M&S have published the contents of their 2026 calendars. The figures below come from their own product pages.
| Calendar | Products | Labelled full size | Declared value vs price |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Lewis | 41 | 21 | about 4.6 times |
| Harrods | 34 | size given for each product | not published |
| M&S | 25 | 10 | over 6 times |
A bigger product count does not mean more full sizes. About half of the John Lewis products are labelled full size, M&S lists 10 of its 25 as full size, and Harrods gives no total value, so its calendar can only be judged product by product.
Multi-brand or single-brand calendar?
A multi-brand calendar from a department store or a beauty retailer mixes many brands, so it suits someone who likes to try new products. A single-brand calendar makes sense for someone who already loves that brand, since every product is one they know. In both cases the number of full sizes matters more than the number of doors.
Are beauty advent calendars worth it?
The declared value adds up the full retail price of every product, minis included, so it always looks generous. What counts is the value of the products the person will actually use.
- Find the contents list before buying. If the brand keeps it secret, you are buying blind.
- Tick the products the person would use and add up their value.
- Compare that total with the price. If the ticked products alone are worth more than the calendar costs, it is good value for that person.
- Check the sizes. In big calendars some minis are as small as 5 ml, so a high product count can hide small formats.
- Count products against doors. When a calendar holds more products than doors, some days bring two or more items.
If you would use fewer than half of the products, one full-size product you love is a better buy than 24 minis you end up giving away.
Best makeup advent calendars
Makeup calendars suit someone who likes to experiment. The useful doors are full-size mascaras, liners and lip products; the risky ones are fixed shades of foundation, concealer and eyeshadow, so check the colours in the product photos before buying. Three makeup calendars sold on Amazon UK:
- Maybelline New York: 24 doors, with a Sky High mascara among the products.
- Revolution Beauty: 24 products for lips, eyes and face, plus brushes, some of them full-size.
- W7: 24 numbered boxes that mix mini and full-size W7 products.
Our beauty advent calendars collection groups the makeup calendars sold on Amazon UK, from Maybelline and L’Oréal Paris to Revolution Beauty and W7.
Revolution Beauty London
Revolution Beauty makeup advent calendar 2025, 24 products
Revolution Beauty London
Revolution Beauty 24-piece makeup advent calendar with lip masks
Best skincare advent calendars
Skincare calendars are the ones to buy for yourself or for someone whose routine you know. Serums and creams are personal: a calendar built around formulas for dry skin is less useful on oily skin.
- Full-size cleansers and moisturisers are the doors that last beyond January.
- Patch-test new actives such as retinol or acids before using them every day.
- Check the period-after-opening symbol, the open jar with a number of months, and use each product within it once opened.
On Amazon UK, NIVEA’s 24-day calendars, one for women and one for men, focus on everyday face and body care, and L’Oréal Paris puts makeup, skincare and haircare in one 24-product box. Both sit in our beauty advent calendar range.
Best fragrance and bath advent calendars
Fragrance calendars come in two kinds: perfume minis and home fragrance such as candles. Perfume minis in the big multi-brand calendars are small: the 2026 John Lewis calendar includes eaux de parfum of 5 ml and 10 ml.
For bath and body, Baylis & Harding and Rituals make 24-day calendars. For men, Lynx and NIVEA MEN make 24-day grooming calendars, and men’s fragrance calendars give one mini scent a day.
Best budget beauty advent calendars
A lower price does not mean a worse deal. M&S declares a value of over six times its price for its 2026 calendar, against about 4.6 times for the John Lewis calendar, which costs more.
At the entry level, the calendars sold on Amazon UK come from high-street brands: W7 and Revolution Beauty for makeup, Baylis & Harding for bath and body, NIVEA for skincare. Their value multiples are rarely published, so judge them on the product list alone. For more calendars at pocket-money prices, see our cheap advent calendars guide.
Beauty advent calendars for teenagers
For a teenager trying makeup for the first time, a high-street makeup calendar is the safer choice. Several makeup calendars on Amazon UK are labelled for teens and girls, so read the contents rather than the label.
Skip anti-ageing skincare calendars for young skin, and check the age marked on the box before buying for a younger child.
When do beauty advent calendars launch and sell out?
Retailers reveal their calendars weeks before they go on sale, so a favourite can be bought early. For 2026:
- John Lewis and Harrods: already on sale at the start of October.
- M&S: revealed in August, with early access for Sparks members from 1 to 7 October.
- M&S: general sale from 13 October, with 25 products.
If the calendar you wanted has gone, the brand calendars in our advent calendars range start on the same date. Our guide to the best advent calendars covers chocolate, LEGO and food calendars, and our advent calendars for women include tea, coffee, puzzle and seed calendars for someone who has enough skincare. All of them, like the rest of our advent calendar collection, count down from 1 December.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the best beauty advent calendar?
It depends on the person. On paper the big department-store calendars give the most: the 2026 John Lewis calendar holds 41 products and declares about 4.6 times its price. For a given person, the best one is still the calendar whose brands they already use.
Is the John Lewis beauty advent calendar worth it?
The 2026 edition holds 41 products, 21 of them labelled full size, including a FOREO UFO 3 Mini device, and its declared value is about 4.6 times the price. It suits someone who likes mainstream brands such as Clarins, Charlotte Tilbury or Elemis.
Is the Harrods beauty advent calendar worth it?
The 2026 calendar has 34 products, and Harrods lists each one with its size on the product page. It does not publish a total value, so add up the products the person would use before deciding.
Is the M&S beauty advent calendar good value?
On the numbers, yes: M&S says its 2026 calendar is worth over six times its price, for 25 products from brands such as Estée Lauder, Clinique and ESPA, 10 of them full size. It goes on general sale on 13 October 2026, after early access for Sparks members from 1 to 7 October.
Is the Charlotte Tilbury advent calendar worth it?
Charlotte Tilbury’s 2026 calendar is a single-brand calendar, so it makes most sense for someone who already uses the brand’s makeup. Check the contents list for full sizes and add up the products they would use before buying.
When do beauty advent calendars come out?
Retailers reveal them weeks before launch. M&S showed its 2026 calendar in August and launches it on 13 October, with Sparks early access from 1 to 7 October, while John Lewis and Harrods already had theirs on sale at the start of October.
What is the best beauty advent calendar for a teenager?
A high-street makeup calendar, such as Revolution Beauty’s 24-product calendar or one of the makeup calendars labelled for teens. Avoid anti-ageing skincare calendars for young skin and check the age marked on the box.
